Bicycle Riding

It's been over 6 months since I last posted so I figured its either time to get rid of my xanga or start posting things a little more often.  Maybe 4 posts a year would be a realistic goal for 2008. 

I had a chance to let the kids ride their bikes outside and I noticed the resemblance between Isaiah and Toad.  Maybe Toad has an overprotective parent like Isaiah does.

Notice that I'm a responsible adult who puts not only a helmet on his kids heads but also elbow pads and knee pads as well.  The only other things that could be added would be gloves and a cup.  Here is Kayla with her armor on next to Isaiah's future bike . 

Notice as well that I am NOT a responsible adult when it concerns myself.  I can't wear a helmet.  I feel like those old motorcyclists who didn't wear one back in the day and had a hard time adjusting when helmet laws came into effect or those crazy old hockey players who were allowed to go helmet-less and toothless late into their careers.  When my kids asked why they have to wear a helmet but I don't, I simply said, "Uh, because you have to wear one and I'm old and ... HEY LET'S GO OUTSIDE BEFORE IT GETS DARK!"  Here is my feeble attempt to relive my past glories. 

I tried other tricks but couldn't pull them off.  I think the neighbors think I'm a crazy old man flopping around on my bicycle, almost hitting the ground but recovering just in time to avoid serious injury.  I'm way past my prime and I've totally lost my skills.  My sense of balance is out of whack, my shoulders are tired, my lower back is stiff, I cut my shin on my pedals, and my butt hurts but it's always feels good to get back on the old bike. 

My bicycle is about 20 years old and its really my only sentimental possession.  I'm not even embarrased by its dated graphics. 

The look of paint drippings were "radical" back in the day  and I must say it still looks pretty "rad" to me.

Legoland

This past Monday, the whole family went to Legoland for Homeschool day.  $17 a ticket per person.  Not bad.  We paid about 1/3 of the regular price.  I wondered if it would be a strange dynamic being there with a bunch of other homeschooled kids.  I didn't know what to expect.  When the day was over, Christine and I mentioned how all the kids were pretty calm and what a nice day it was. 

The fine people at Legoland were well prepared for those naughty and rebellious homeschoolers just in case.

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There were some pretty cool things made out of Legos. 

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Yup, these are my kids.

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The thinking man is no match for the curious mind of a homeschooler.  I wonder what he is thinking about now .  Hey Joshua, what are you looking at?

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This was probably the most intense ride at Legoland.  Before riding, you can tell the operator of the ride how intense you wanted it to be.  This was a #2.  I think it went as high as 8 or 10. 

With Isaiah's love for cars, he really wanted to do the driving school thing.  He kept turning to the right, crashing, and getting stuck.  This is how it ended.  HA HA! 

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If this was our first kid, we'd sympathize with him and comfort him after it was over.  Since Isaiah is our 3rd, we laugh at him, take pictures, and share them with the world .  Stop crying boy and turn left!

He wanted to try again and started off the same way and then all of a sudden something clicked. 

That wasn't me speaking Korean.  It was someone else.  Since they didn't have any schoolwork that day, the kids were pretty happy. 

BTW, the boys aren't Dodger fans but the brainwashing isn't complete. 

Eating without complaining

Christine and I have tried hard to have our kids be thankful for the food placed in front of them and to eat without complaining.  It doesn't mean that there won't be some natural reactions along the way. 

Did you notice how his nostrils are flared as he finishes up?  What a good sport!  I love this little guy. 

In Jesus' Name

I don't like answering machines.  Earlier today, I left a message on The Children's Hunger Fund's answering machine to let them know our final numbers for our church's time there this Saturday.  The message started off like this, "Hi, this is Won Bin Song the pastor of Hope Bible Church..." The end of the message sounded something like this:  "... we're looking forward to serving this Saturday IN JESUS' NAME... uh uhm, okay bye." 

UH OH REWIND!  TIME OUT!  DO OVER!  SNEAK INTO THE BUILDING AND ERASE THE MESSAGE!  DID I REALLY SAY MY FULL NAME BEFORE I STARTED?  DID I JUST SAY "IN JESUS' NAME"?

Yes I did.  Yes, I am very embarrased.  I could just point to my Christocentric ways or spin things by saying that I am a very prayerful person but those things wouldn't be true in this case.  I could have tried to play it off by sounding all spiritual at the end of the message but that would've just been weird.  I have no alibi except... I'm an idiot sometimes . 

As I was typing this xanga entry, Yasmine from the CHF called back to confirm things for this Saturday.  She is either a having a really good day or had a smile on her face the whole time she was talking to me.  HA HA!  I hope she got a good laugh out of it along everyone reading this. 

IN JESUS NAME!

I Rub This Guy!

One reason I'm so affectionate with Isaiah is because he lets me.  Here is an example of what I'm talking about.

A normal kid would've been provoked to anger after about 10-15 seconds.  This was actually the 3rd round of rubbing his cheeks.  I had to pause the other two times to feed him.  BTW, at the end of the video, Isaiah is mentioning how the bread on his sandwich "cracked" (it fell apart).  And as you can tell, that strange kid in the background is not normal either .